Paul's Spirited Travel: 2022 Tales of the Cocktail Rum Recap

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    Spirited Travel: 2022 Tales of the Cocktail Rum Recap

The hospitality industry, for the past two years, has endured innumerable challenges and struggles. According to Fortune magazine, in 2020, the U.S. lost 110,000 establishments, with more closures in 2021 and 2022 to follow. Unfortunately, this resulted in the service business losing an unfathomable amount of talent. Now we are in a phase some are calling “The Great Reset” as the industry struggles to regain its footing and discover how to move forward.  One of the indicators that things were getting better and returning to something resembling normal happened when Tales of the Cocktail (TOTC) announced it would be in person again at the Ritz Carlton in 2022.  After two years of hosting virtual conferences, the TOTC Foundation once again gathered the global hospitality industry for an in-person conference in New Orleans.  In some ways, it was like a family reunion; in others, you could sense the underlying tension and cathartic release as participants reunited for the first time in years.  Before going virtual, the Foundation had introduced strong health and well-being programming, along with addressing diversity and social challenges in the industry, creating a foundation of inclusivity that had been missing before.  All these things were present this year but, with such a large insurgence of new talent in the industry, there was a higher focus on training, techniques and brand education.  Collectively, all these factors set the stage for what would be by far one of the most interesting Tales of the Cocktail I have ever experienced.

For the rum industry, the Tales of the Cocktail programming was a bit different from previous years.  Equiano rum, Flor de Caña, Maison Ferrand’s Plantation rums, Paranubes rum, and Ron Zacapa each had seminars devoted to their brands at the host hotel, the Ritz Carlton.  Where rum brands really shone was at the portfolio and themed tasting events that happened during the week at various venues at the Ritz and around New Orleans. One of my personal favorites of the week happened Monday night: Kraken Spiced rum invited guests to the Napoleon House to “Step into the Dark” and enjoy a blind-folded dining experience where food and cocktails were paired in such a way to highlight the flavors of what was being consumed. While being fun, it educated participants in ways the spiced rum could be used in cocktails.  Not far away, at the House of Blues, the Liquid Death Water brand had partnered with Havana Club Puerto Rican rum for a fun experience of music and cocktails that seemed on point for the brands involved.  This set the tone for events that followed during the week as guests experienced Flor de Caña and Sailor Jerry cocktails at the William Grant party, Bacardi was among the many offerings at the Bacardi portfolio party, and Ron Zacapa was easily found at the Diageo party.

During the week, participants had the opportunity to sample over 30 rums from around the globe into what turned into a spirited scavenger hunt.  At themed events and portfolio tastings attendees discovered expressions from Spiribam’s Rhum JM, Rhum Clément, Bounty and Chairman’s Reserve rums; Maison Ferrand’s Cane Rock spiced rum; Ron Paranubes, Ron Carúpano, Ron Colon Salvadoreño, as well as the Philippines’ Kasama rum all made their TOTC debut.   Marsh House, Worthy Park, Transcontinental, and Three Rolls among some of the other rums showcased during the week.  Brand-focused events continued throughout the week, with Campari hosting a Heart of Jamaica event featuring Wray and Nephew and Appleton cocktails at the Cane and Table restaurant. The Sazerac House hosted several events during the week and for rum lovers, the “Tropical Treasures” event was a hit, featuring Rhum St. James, Myers’s, Cane rum, Jung and Wulff rums, and Novo Fogo Cachaça.  Mount Gay offered guests cocktails and dominoes by the pool at the Chloe hotel. Don Q had several happy hour events during the week at different bars, hotels, and restaurants around the city, putting the versatility of their rum line on full display and impressing industry veterans and neophytes with their range of creativity.  Equiano rum was present at several events as owner and Global Rum Ambassador, Ian Burrell, discussed its unique history and place in the industry.  

As the last day of Tales arrived, I reflected upon where the industry was and is now while meeting with Tales of the Cocktail board member, Neil Bodenheimer.  The interconnectivity and challenges of the recovering hospitality industry over the past two years have at times been overwhelming. At every level of the service industry, operations are starting to come back online with a combination of veterans and a healthy infusion of new talent.  The theme of this year’s conference was fittingly “Progress.” From the TOTC page: “PROGRESS illustrates the adaptive change of the drinks industry. Tales of the Cocktail Foundation is inspired to embrace this theme in 2022 to showcase the transformative atmosphere and nature of our community.”  In my meetings with the rum brands, the themes of sustainability, interconnectivity, innovation, and positive progress were reoccurring goals.  From Spiribam’s Rhum JM EDDEN project (Engagés pour le Développement Durable de nos Écosystèmes et de notre Nature), Montanya Distillers’ environmental conservation programs, to Flor de Caña’s Sustainable Cocktail challenge, there is an underlying theme of how the alcohol and hospitality industry can do their parts to make things better for the world and future generations. As the hospitality industry continues to find its way forward, at Tales, the rum brands demonstrated how they are a valuable part of the experience and invested partners in ensuring the success of the industry moving forward.  There is no doubt that with supply chain issues and other challenges, the industry will have to continue to adapt, but having Tales of the Cocktail in person again helped feed the souls of the participants and made everyone feel optimistic in a time that can be overwhelming.  Hopefully, this optimism will help carry the industry forward as it recovers and progresses globally into uncharted territory.  For those who enjoy rum, there are several new products on the horizon, and as brands continue to innovate by creating new expressions, there is certainly a great deal to look forward to with the positive progress of the rum category.

Paul Senft